New Boss:http://www.wowhead.com/?npc=25740#dropsDrops an epic magic dps staff, tanking cloak, and healing cloak!I believe that his loot only drops in the heroic version, so you can only do him once/day. The normal version drops different gear that isn't as good, don't know what yet.If people need these loots, there may be alot of Heroic Slave Pens runs in the next two weeks...

Alright.I believe now that the neckpieces only drop in the heroic version.Everything else drops in the normal version though, and we can do that up to 5 times.I've also heard that the heroic version of this boss is difficult.

At each major city capital camp there is an Earthen Ring Elder representing the faction neutral Earthen Ring, an organization of shaman similar to the druids' Cenarion Circle. The Elder will offers a short quest chain starting with Unusual Activity, for which you must travel to the Zoram Strand of Ashenvale and slay level 20+ Twilight Firesworn until the Twilight Correspondence drops. Once you receive it, use the Totemic Beacon to summon an Earthen Ring Guide to complete the quest.

The Guide will then give you the next part of the quest, An Innocent Disguise for which you are given an orb that changes you into a Crawler for three minutes. In your new disguise, you must travel northwest of the entrance of Blackfathom Depths - you will know you're going the right way if you periodically find blue-flamed torches, and eventually a small encampment on the shore. While disguised, witness the exchange between the naga and the Ice Caller Briatha until the quest completes. When it is finished, you can move out of range of the mobs and cancel the disguise, and summon the Earthen Ring Guide once again. This time, upon relaying the information, the guide will give you the quest Inform the Elder, requesting that you return to an Earthen Ring Elder and report your findings.

Once you have returned to an Earthen Ring Elder, the quest chain will complete and either one or two quests will become available, depending on your level. For characters level 22 and above, a repeatable daily quest will open up. The quest is called Striking Back, and depending on your level range you will be given a single objective at a location in Azeroth or Outland.

* Striking Back (Level 22) - This quest has you summon and kill a Frostwave Lieutenant from an Ice Stone located at the Zoram Strand, Ashenvale. Awards Burning Blossom x10 and 3 silver 50 copper. * Striking Back (Level 32) - This quest has you summon and kill a Hailstone Lieutenant from an Ice Stone at Ethel Rethor, Desolace. Awards Burning Blossom x10 and 8 silver. * Striking Back (Level 43) - This quest has you summon and kill a Chillwind Lieutenant from an Ice Stone in Stranglethorn Vale. Desolace. Awards Burning Blossom x10 and 15 silver. * Striking Back (Level 51) - This quest has you summon and kill a Frigid Lieutenant from an Ice Stone in the northwestern part of Searing Gorge. Awards Burning Blossom x10 and 19 silver. * Striking Back (Level 60) - This quest has you summon and kill a Glacial Lieutenant from an Ice Stone at Twilight's Run, Silithus. Awards Burning Blossom x10 and 23 silver. * Striking Back (Level 67) - This quest has you summon and kill a Glacial Templar from an Ice Stone near the Dark Portal, in Hellfire Peninsula. Awards Burning Blossom x10 and 94 silver.

If you character is level 65 or higher, the Earthen Ring Elder will offer a second quest, Ahune, the Frost Lord. This quest asks you to travel to the Slave Pens in Zangarmarsh in search of Numa Cloudsister, who is located right inside the instance. This quest, and it's follow-up, are not actually required to summon Ahune! You can summon Ahune by going straight to Luma Skymother, without having completed any other Midsummer quest.

When you turn in that quest she will give the quest Ahune is Here! and ask that you find Luma Skymother, who is located a bit further into the instance. Finally, Luma will give you the quest Summon Ahune, granting you an Earthen Ring Magma Totem allowing you to (you guessed it) summon Ahune . Use the totem at the Ice Stone located just beyond Luma and defeat Ahune to complete the quest, which awards 4 gold 40 silver and experience (or an additional 7 gold 59 silver at level 70). The Ice Stone is located before the first boss of the instance, so essentially you could repeatedly farm the encounter provided you have enough players to keep summoning, without ever having to kill a normal boss.

If this is your first time killing Ahune, he will drop an item called Shards of Ahune which starts the quest Shards of Ahune. Accept the quest and bring the shard to Luma Skymother, and she will reward you with Burning Blossom x20 and your choice of a unique tabard: the Tabard of Summer Skies or the Tabard of Summer Flame. You can only complete this quest once, so you will not be able to receive both tabards on the same character (well, not until next year at least)! The quest to summon Ahune can only be completed once per day, per person. Which means that if you have a five person party, each person can complete the quest to summon him one time (provided you didn't actually save yourself to the Heroic) and you could potentially do five runs, one after another. Even if you have killed the boss, as long as at least one person in your party is able to take the quest and summon him you'll have yet another chance at some of the phat loot he drops!

Last edited by Chev on Mon Jun 23, 2008 6:55 am; edited 1 time in total